One of my favorite books that my book club read was the book Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand (author of Seabiscuit). It is a story of an Olympic hopeful who roomed with Jesse Owens and met Adolf Hitler at the 1936 Olympics. When WWII broke out and the 1940 Olympic games were canceled, Louis Zamperini enlisted in the war as a bombardier. The book shares his story about surviving a plane crash, being lost at sea for 47 days, becoming a Japanese POW and his survival of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Shortly after reading the book I had the privilege of hearing Louis Zamperini speak at a local church. At age 93, he was not only entertaining but inspiring. In the overflowing church, Louis asked for all war veterans to stand. The overwhelming sense of gratitude from everyone there was evident with the roar from the crowd and a unanimous standing ovation. And from the veterans themselves you could feel their appreciation and sense of pride.
Angelina Jolie is currently directing a movie adaptation of the book that is due to hit movie theaters at the end of next year.
In the meantime, here is a clip of one of the true heroes of WWII:
Thank you to those who serve, for those who support the ones who serve and for those that have sacrificed so much for us all!